Overview: Chelonra is a steam-powered war machine manufactured by the British Empire in 1891 as part of their undersea-warfare efforts. Physically, Chelonra looks like a giant turtle, though it is designed to burrow under the sea floor, rather than float buoyantly. While thus submerged, only Chelonra's hardened shell is exposed, making direct assault against the machine very difficult. Chelonra's weaponry is designed for maximum under-water impact, including concussion grenades and a heat beam which makes water explode rapidly. On land, Chelonra is a swift combatant who uses his pneumatic claws to deliver swift beatdowns.

Origin:After establishing shipping & mercantile dominance in the end of the 19th century, Great Britain declared itself "Master of the Seas." Unfortunately for them, this did not sit well with the sentient inhabitants of the world's oceans - who took the boast as a slight, and began to sink shipping vessels around the world. With conventional warfare techniques useless, Scotland's top scientists conceived of a revolutionary concept - to build a large undersea vessel which could take the fight directly to the enemy. Chelonra's first offensive action came in May 1891, when he was sent to disrupt a major underwater fortification. He never returned, and the project was thought to be a failure. But unbeknownst to any on the surface, Chelonra was successful in his offensive! Unfortunately, achieving his objective used up too much Steam Power, and he was unable to return himself to land. As a result, he has been sitting unpowered at the bottom of the North Sea for more than 100 years - until he was very recently re-discovered, dredged up, and the fires in his belly were stoked once again.

Energy System: Chelonra regains energy over time.

Ranged Combat: Chelonra primary ranged weapon is his powerful heat beam, which is aimed with his head. This weapon was originally designed to discourage underwater targets by converting water into steam, rendering the aquatic targets helpless. For longer ranges Chelonra relies on his Royal Artillery, which can be used to saturate specific areas of the battlefield. When submerged, Chelonra can use the Artillery launchers as direct-fire explosive weapons. Chelonra's most devastating weapon is his experimental "Scientific Aperture" which launches a close-range burst of energy, but is subject to a lengthy recharging sequence after each use.

Grappling: Chelonra has average grappling capabilities, which he usually employs to ensure weapon hits.

Melee Combat: Chelonra's limbs are built with the latest in steam-driven piston technology, which allows him to deal significant impact damage to opponents without the large swinging motions most fighters require. Chelonra has been designed to use modern pugilism techniques, which minimize his exposure to harm while maximizing the damage he can deal when opportunities present themselves. Despite these advantages, Chelonra usually confronts strong opponents via submersion, which further minimizes his exposure to counter-attacks.

Weaknesses: Chelonra's shell is nearly invulnerable to weapon fire and heavy impacts, but his other mechanisms are fairly pedestrian by comparison, and are not designed to endure prolonged trauma. Chelonra expects to exploit the element of surprise in his attacks, which is often less useful as military campaigns draw out into prolonged encounters. Chelonra was designed for rapid movements both underwater and semi-submerged, which means his reaction times out of the water are excellent, but generate significant heat. Heat distribution in the air can become a problem, which normally prevents Chelonra from using his full mobility out of the water.